Settling in to Life in Budapest...Somewhat.
I was this woman on September the 8th...And then some.
So it's been awhile since my last update. I am genuinely sorry, but as I've lamented in my last two posts...I truly feel run around like a headless chicken here at times! Hopefully now that I'm settling into classes, and all my ducks are in a row, I can start updating things every few days instead of every few weeks! :)
So, the first story I HAVE to share is a classic case of #firstworldproblems, because, frankly, I am a spoiled American. This is a realization that hit me rather emphatically two weeks ago when I made my first rather pathetic attempt at doing laundry here in Budapest. The directions for the washing machine is naturally in Hungarian here, so I did not know exactly how to use it, but I gave it a whirl because the only clothes I had remaining that didn't smell like shit were my pajama T-Shirt, my basketball shorts, and my flip flops. So I throw in a load of laundry...And it is the worst experience I have had with laundry. Like ever. Even after hitting "express wash" after I realized I put it in a long cycle...My clothes stayed in that washer from 12:30 PM to 4:15 PM. Almost. Four. Fucking. Hours. Like...How? And then I realize my dorm room has no dryer.
HELL TO THE NO! I was just about at my rope's end by this point, so I threw my wet clothes into my laundry bag, stuffed my dirty clothes into my suitcase, called a taxi, and headed for a pay-for-laundromat on Dohany Utca. Why did I do this? Because they had a dryer. I wound up doing three washing loads, five drying loads (Two had to be dried twice), and five hours of internet, and so I ran up an 8,500 HUF bill (The equivalent about $40 USD) but do I regret it? Not one iota. Anything not to hang up clothes on a drying rack. Yes, I am a spoiled son from the upper middle-class in this way. Deal with it. I've gone there twice since and will a third time this weekend. Each week I rack up about a $20 laundry bill. But I really don't care. Anything not to do the drying of the clothes myself. ANYTHING.
I truly hope I never have a day like that one again with any laundry machine again. In total I spent nine hours doing laundry, and after burning $40 USD there, burned another $35 on a goulash soup and salmon steak at the fancy restaurant across the street...Which I naturally showed up to in my pajama shirt, basketball shorts, and flip flops, and basically told the waiter to feed me because I was American and had money. I got a few looks, but I got what I wanted and they got a customer. I've gone back to that place since (But dressed nicer).
The very next day, classes began. I really enjoy all of my classes, as they all have interesting subject matter and compelling reads (Well, okay, History Class really doesn't, but history is important, okay?) . I'm taking History of Hungary, Eastern European Lit, Hungarian Language, European Integration and Security, and Political Problems of Transition Post Cold War. All these classes have something I'm interested in, especially the latter two, as I am a political science major and want to go into international business law. I will never miss one of those classes, even if I'm ill. They're fascinating, and our professor is the senior adviser to the Minister of Defense here in Hungary, so he's kind of a big deal.
The very next day, I got my big birthday present from my family. Tamas got me tickets to the Hungary vs. Estonia World Cup Qualifying Match. Not only was it awesome to go to a World Cup Qualifying Match, but Hungary blasted Estonia 5-1, AND also climbed back into second in their qualification pool, but they still need to upset the Dutch if they are to advance to the qualifying playoffs. Fingers crossed, folks! And believe me, I was DECKED OUT for the match! Hajra, Magyarorszag all day!
VIVA HUNGARY!!! :)
Then the days after that, September 11th, was my BIG 21st birthday! There was a party that night for Corvinus students, so we hit it, and I had about five glasses of rose wine, danced like a fool to no beat (I can't dance; it's rather embarrassing), but I didn't care as I danced anyway because you only get one 21st birthday! :)
As if there wasn't enough in this action-packed week, that weekend we had three straight days of excursions. On the 13th, we went to Esztergom and Visegrad, two historically significant cities along the Danube Bend. Basilicas and important treaties abound in these two picturesque cities. My favorite thing to do over these two days was spend a long amount of time in the Basilica in Esztergom. We went up to the lookout tower and got an absolutely breathtaking view of both Esztergom and the outskirts of Slovakia. We even got to venture into Slovakia by crossing the Danube. Even if it was only for five minutes, I can now say I've been in Slovakia. That's pretty awesome, y'all.
Kristin and I at a lookout point. Slovakia is on the opposite side of the Danube.
We also went to Visegrad, saw some beautiful fortresses and a wax museum (Where I swear there were real people pretending to be wax figures all over), and saw more once-in-a-lifetime views. Oh, and we had a Renaissance meal and were treated like royalty...Andrew got drunk on shoddy Palkina, then wiped out when we got to bobsled. (First time I did it...no wipeout! Woot!)
The next two days, we ventured deep into the heart of Hungary, spending time paying our respect to those who fell in the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, which, for those of you who don't know, was the first true domino to fall in the downfall of Soviet Communism...Even if Hungary's revolt was ultimately crushed rather emphatically. Many rebels died...My grandparents fled Hungary during '56, so this really hit home for me because my grandparents lived this brutal revolution. They were part of it. It meant a lot to get to see first-hand a lot of this stuff. I took many pictures and was really humbled and felt really grateful for everything I've gotten to have in my life, because a lot of people haven't gotten it like that. My grandparents had to claw their way out of this country and leave their homeland behind. I couldn't even imagine. Here are some photos from the weekend.
Images of '56 Memorials...Including a prison cell, a statue of a child of Budapest, the Stalin statue, and a long list of rebel soldiers executed by the Communist Regime. Ne felejt el ezerkilencszazotvenhat! (Never forget 1956!)
The weekend wasn't all doom and gloom, however, as in between all these rather somber and emphatic reminders of the suffering Hungary has endured, as well as how lucky we are as Americans (And just young people in this generation in general) to NOT be growing up in wartime, we had rather festive and enjoyable ventures as well. Between our first trip to the '56 Memorial and arriving at a Youth Hostel in BFN (Butt-Fuck Nowhere), we stopped in a small Hungarian town known for its wine and its sweets, and since it was their festival week, we got personally greeted by the town's mayor, got a wine tasting and got to indulge in their wide array of sweets as well, some pictures:
Wining and dining at its best ~
This past week was a welcome relief from the hustle and bustle of the prior one. I went to class, went out to drink a few times, hit on a girl at the bar for the first time in my life (Yeah, first time, seriously), and just enjoyed some down time with family. Now I wait to see what the next adventures bring. ON Friday we head to the old Hungarian town of Eger, where my family has a Greek Orthodox Church where our dead are buried. Would be interesting if our group stops by there. I'd feel special. :P
Today I got an Internship, and I cannot wait to do it. My job is to teach English to Hungarian college students. I cannot even begin to describe how excited I am for this opportunity. Not only is it an opportunity to make friends, but it's an opportunity to teach people my native tongue, and hopefully improve MY Hungarian, too, since Hungarian is not my mother tongue, but I desperately want to hold onto my Hungarian. It's seriously a blessing to have such an obscure tongue, and I'd love to be able to not only teach these students English, but improve my Hungarian, too. I've never been a teacher before, so I really relish the chance to hopefully make some impact on people's lives.
See you all Saturday, with updates from Eger!
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